Airbus (Toulouse) has issued tho statement regarding the 40th anniversary of the introduction of the Airbus A300 with Air France (Paris):
Airbus is proud to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the entry into service of its first aircraft โ the A300B โ operated by Air France as the launch customer.
Above Copyright Photo: Airbus. The first A300 is handed over to Air France.
Today leading the aviation industry, Airbus was focused at the very outset on innovation, by designing the A300B as the worldโs first twin-engine widebody.
Moreover, the success of that program and the philosophy to innovate has been the cornerstone of Airbusโ ongoing success story.
Starting in 1974, 878 A300/A310 Family aircraft have been manufactured. Even today, over 400 of these are still in service with 65 customers.
Top Copyright Photo: Christian Volpati/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A300B2-1A F-BVGA (msn 005) is beautifully portrayed in the original 1974 livery at the Paris (CDG). The A300 was delivered to Air France on May 10, 1974.
Kenya Airways (Nairobi) will introduce the newly-delivered Boeing 787 Dreamliner on the Nairobi-Paris (CDG) route on June 3. The 787 will replace an older Boeing 767-300 ER on the route.
Copyright Photo: Royal S. King/AirlinersGallery.com. The first 787-8, the pictured 5Y-KZA (msn 35510), is named The Great Rift Valley. The new type was handed over to the carrier on April 4, 2014.
Air France (Paris) yesterday (May 7)ย in Shanghai, unveiled its new La Premiรจre suite. This is the next stage of its vast project to move upmarket with its long-haul ‘Best and Beyond’ product, the La Premiรจre suite will progressively be equip on its 19 Boeing 777-300s from September 2014.
Air Franceโs new La Premiรจre, a designer suite:
MORE THAN JUST A SEAT, A PRIVATE SUITE
The new La Premiรจre cabin, a veritable jewel, now has four exclusive individual suites on board Air Franceโs long-haul Boeing 777-300. On board, each suite ensures optimum privacy and enables customers to be totally or partially alone, in absolute comfort.
Well-being, relaxation and serenity go hand in hand, for an exceptional trip. Once on board, the La Premiรจre guest will immediately feel at home. The large seat adapts to any morphology and promotes rest and relaxation. Each guest has a personal 24-inch (61 cm) HD touch screen, one of the largest ever seen on board.
A BED WORTHY OF THE GREATEST HOTELS
Like spending a night in a palace, sleeping in one of our La Premiรจre suites is a completely exclusive experience. In an instant, the seat turns into a fully-flat bed over two metres long. The armrests are fully retractable and offer a vast space 77 cm wide.
When the passenger is ready to go to sleep, the crew members install a mattress on the seat, for impeccable comfort. They are then given a fluffy pillow and a Sofitel My Bedยฎ duvet. The pillow is placed in a soft cotton pillowcase for ultimate softness, guaranteeing a perfect nightโs sleep.
AN OPEN OR TOTALLY PRIVATE SUITE, THE LUXURY OF DECIDING YOURSELF
Air France dresses each suite with thick curtains, held back with leather tiebacks. A unique and daring concept, they enable the passenger to decide whether to be totally isolated or just partially. Once the curtains are closed, the passenger has the feeling of being alone at home, totally enclosed in their private cabin. The La Premiรจre suite then becomes a vast, totally private space, with 3 square metres available for each guest.
The suite can also be enjoyed with a fellow passenger. Opposite the seat, a comfortable seat, an ottoman, enables the passenger to invite a guest for dinner or simply for a conversation. The suite in turn then becomes a drawing room, a restaurant, or a work area. Anything goes in this space which changes according to the passengerโs desires.
A DESIGNER SPIRIT
Air France embodies French elegance, expressed by its choice of textures and materials, continually guided by an obsession for absolute comfort.
The โleather-effectโ cabin walls provide a cosy atmosphere. The high-quality leather can also be found on the headrests and armrests. A thick, soft woven tweed fabric covers the seat, providing a touch of elegance to the ensemble. The various storage compartments are padded with suede. With its stitching, touches of wood and metal, la suite represents the utmost in sophistication, down to the slightest details.
“Our new La Premiรจre suite, from among all our new products and services, is the one that best represents our commitment to service excellence and a French travel experience. It illustrates our intention to recover and our global ambition.” declared Frรฉdรฉric Gagey, Chairman and CEO of Air France.
AT A GLANCE
Designed for Air France by the manufacturer B/E Aerospace, the new La Premiรจre suite is the only one of its kind in the world. Its unique design has been specially created by designer Priestmangoode and design and branding agency, Brandimage.
ยท 76 seats equipping 19 Boeing 777-300
ยท An exclusive cabin with 4 suites
ยท A unique concept, with each suite featuring adjustable curtains
ยท A suite designed with top-of-the-range materials โ leather, woven fabrics, suede, etc.
ยท A spacious, ergonomically-designed seat, with integrated lumbar support
ยท Direct access to the central aisle
ยท A large fully-flat bed
ยท A sleek console with integrated storage compartments
ยท A large table and an ottoman for inviting a guest during the trip
ยท A mobile partition and adjustable curtains, allowing each guest to choose their preferred level of privacy
ยท A plaid and โboudoirโ cushion available as soon as the guest boards
ยท A mattress, cushion and warm duvet for optimum sleeping comfort
ยท A private wardrobe
ยท A 24-inch High Definition screen and touch remote
ยท The window blinds close at the flick of a switch
ยท Accessories to make the guest feel at home; bedside lamp, pillow, plaid, etc.
KEY DIMENSIONS
ยท Bed length: 2.01 m
ยท Bed width: 77 cm
ยท Width of the seat: 57 cm
ยท Total length of the suite: 2.30 m
ยท Total surface area: 3 square metres
โAIR FRANCE, FRANCE IS IN THE AIRโ
To unveil its new La Premiรจre suite, as well as its new travel concept and all the new cabins it has recently revealed, Air France has created a unique event with three international exhibitions in Shanghai, New York and Paris in May, June and September 2014.
These exhibitions, which are open free to the public, have been designed as a journey. Real and virtual experiences are combined so that everyone can experience Air Franceโs new world with interactive animations.
Top Copyright Photo: Ole Simon/AirlinersGallery.com (all others by Air France). Boeing 777-328 ER F-GSQD (msn 32726) taxies at the Paris (Charles de Gaulle) hub.
Air France (Paris) and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (Air France-KLM Group) together reported a new lossย of โฌ608 million ($843 million) for the first quarter. This was narrowed fromย โฌ641 million ($888 million) in the same quarter a year ago.
Top Copyright Photo: Manuel Negrerie/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A320-214 F-HEPG (msn 5802) of Air France with Sharklets and the special 80 And/Years emblem arrives at the Paris (CDG) hub.
Air France (Paris) will introduce the Airbus A380 on the Paris (CDG)-Hong Kong route on May 27.
In other route news, Air France will operate two daily flights to Stavanger (Norway) from Paris-Charles de Gaulle starting on March 31. Air Franceยดs second destination in Norway, after Oslo, Stavanger is the centre of Norwayยดs oil and gas industry.
Additionally the flag carrierย will operate a new daily service to Jakarta, Indonesia as a continuation of the Singapore route starting on March 30 from Paris-Charles de Gaulle.
Starting on March 31, 2014, Air France will begin operating to Brasilia, the third AF destination in Brazil, with three weekly frequencies (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) from Paris-Charles de Gaulle.
Copyright Photo: Ton Jochems/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A380-861 F-HPJH (msn 099) turns onto the runway at Los Angeles International Airport bound for Paris (CDG).
Etihad Regional (Darwin Airline) (Lugano) SAAB 2000 HB-IZG was involved in a landing accident at Paris (Charles de Gaulle) on January 28. The aircraft was operating flight F7 250 from Leipzig with 16 passengers and three crew members. The nose gear was damaged on landing.
Read the full report from Express (with photo): CLICK HERE
Copyright Photo: Andi Hiltl/AirlinersGallery.com. SAAB HB-IZG (msn 010) arrives at Zurich before the incident.
AeroMexico (Mexico City) is now planning to introduce the new Boeing 787-8 on the Mexico City-London (Heathrow) route starting on March 15 instead of April 16 per Airline Route. The new type will initially be operated two days a week.
Copyright Photo: Manuel Negrerie/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 787-8 N964AM (msn 35307) arrives at Paris (CDG).
CityJet (Dublin and London-City) is currently owned by the Air France-KLM Group and is for sale. As previously reported, last month the group announcedย Intro Aviation GmbH, of which Hans Rudolf Woehrl is a co-founder, made an offer pending finalization to acquire CityJet as well as its subsidiary VLM Airlines. The deal is expected to close in this quarter.
Now German aviation investor Hans Rudolf Woehrl says he wants to merge CityJet with InterSky Lufthfahrt (Bregenz, Austria and Friedrichshafen, Germany) according to this report by Reuters.ย Intro Aviation controls 74.9 percent of the InterSky stock.
Woehrl wants the merged new carrier to serve regional routes that will not upset the major carriers.
Top Copyright Photo: Pepscl/AirlinersGallery.com. CityJet operates most of its flights for Air France. It is unclear if the Air France relationship will survive the sale and merger. BAe RJ85 EI-RJH (msn E2344) taxies at Charles de Gaulle (CDG) hub near Paris.
CityJet:ย
Air France by CityJet:ย
InterSky:
Bottom Copyright Photo: Andi Hiltl/AirlinersGallery.com.ย InterSky operates threeย Bombardier DHC-8-300s(Q300) and two ATR 72-600s.ย InterSky’s ATR 72-212A (ATR 72-600) OE-LIB (msn 1038) lands at Zurich.
InterSky’s seasonal and regular routes fromย Friedrichshafen:
Air Transat (Montreal) (website), world’s first certified green airline in 2011, has reached another milestone. The airline is the first in the world to have achieved the second level Minimization award in the Fly-360-Green Certification Program, a benchmark for high performing airlines / aircraft operators.
“We are especially proud to have obtained this certification because it recognizes the efforts that we have made to improve our environmental performance in every area of our airline through initiatives such as greenhouse gas reduction, energy and water conservation, recycling and social responsibility” said Jean-Francois Lemay , General Manager of Air Transat. “It was the hard work and dedication of our employees that enabled us to attain this high standard and we will continue to improve so that we maintain our role as an industry leader.”
Developed by the World Green Aviation Council (WorldGAC), Fly-360-Greenย is a point based performance rating system where points are earned for business attributes considered environmentally beneficial in 8 key areas: Engineering, Ground Operations, Flight Planning/Dispatch, Flight Operations, Greening on Board, Corporate Environmental Practices, Corporate Policies, Strategic Planning.ย Airlines and aircraft operators can qualify for one of the four certification levels: Participation, Minimization, Efficiency, and Neutrality.
Fly-360-Greenย differs from other rating systems in that it has quantified most of the “green credits”. This ensures airlines are environmentally compatible, retain high quality standards, and are financially sound. The World Green Aviation Council, apart from fostering the international standard for sustainable aviation by addressing aviation’s absolute emissions, is the third-party administrator of theย Fly-360-Greenย certification program.
WorldGAC performs technical reviews and verification ofย Fly-360-Greenย registered projects to determine if they meet the standards set forth in theย Fly-360-Greenย rating system. Dedicated technical experts ensureย Fly-360-Greenย certification meets the highest levels of quality and integrity.
Copyright Photo: Jacques Guillem/AirlinersGallery.com.ย Air Transat’s Airbus A330-342 C-GCTS (msn 177) taxies at Paris (CDG).
Air India (Mumbai) is getting another chance to join the Star Alliance.ย At their board meeting held in Vienna on December 13, the Chief Executives of theย Star Alliance member airlines decided unanimously to recommence the integrationย process with Air India.
The Indian national carrier was originally accepted as a future member of Starย Alliance in December 2007, but the integration process was halted in July 2011.ย The suspension was a joint decision which allowed Air India to focus onย completing its merger with Indian Airlines, without the distraction of the workย required for full integration into the Star Alliance network.
Copyright Photo: Yannick Delamarre/AirlinersGallery.com. The Boeing 777-300 ERs are now the mainstay of the international fleet. Boeing 777-337 ER VT-ALK (msn 36309) departs from Paris (CDG).
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